Brian's scholarship rewards positive attitude, hard work

Padric LaTour, Gregg Sculthorpe, Johannah Adams and Andrew Prosser at Saturday's Holden Police road race modeled t-shirts with Brian's picture. Joyce Roberts photo The Brian C. Sculthorpe Academic Improvement Scholarship clearly describes its mission in its title: to reward a student who has shown improvement in the classroom during his or her high school career.

The scholarship is named for WRHS student Brian Sculthorpe of Holden, who took his own life December 29 at home.

Brian's father, Holden Police Officer Gregg Sculthorpe, recalls that his son often struggled in school. So when Gregg, girlfriend Johannah Adams, and their friends Alan Vilian and Eric Johansen decided to establish a scholarship in Brian's memory, it seemed natural that it go not to a straight-A student but rather to someone whose academic experience more borne out by clear improvement in class, will be among the criteria for awarding the $500 scholarship.

But this is more than a scholarship, Adams notes. It's the first initiative of the Brian Sculthorpe Foundation, whose goal will be to assist struggling students by offering tutoring scholarships, a Web site with links featuring advice on homework and study habits, and other outreach efforts.

Each scholarship applicant will be asked to write an essay describing their academic journey, both the low points and the rewards, and offer advice to underclassmen about how best to handle academic pressures. Those pieces of advice will be compiled over the next several years and put in a booklet form that Gregg hopes to have distributed to every incoming freshman at Wachusett.

"Maybe it will go to someone who started out kind of rough until they found something that clicked for them," Gregg Sculthorpe says. "I'm hoping that out of something tragic, we can get something positive."

Students can apply through the WRHS guidance office. Applicants will use the standard scholarship form and write an essay giving advice to freshman. The deadline to submit is May 12 in the guidance office.

Donations to the foundation can be made payable to: The Brian Sculthorpe Foundation, c/o Leominster Credit Union, 715 Main St., Holden, MA 01520.